Puerto Rico UCC search complications - debtor name formatting issues

Yes, I tried both with and without the accents. Still getting inconsistent results. The corporation name has 'José' in it and I'm not sure if I should be searching 'Jose' or 'José' or both.

I always do multiple variations when dealing with Spanish names. The systems aren't always consistent with character encoding.

It's a corporation registered in PR. I have the exact corporate name from their articles but the search keeps returning zero results which seems impossible given their business size.

Try searching just partial names or key words from the corporate name. Sometimes their search algorithm doesn't handle the full legal name well.

This is why I started using Certana.ai for these searches. You can upload the corporate documents and it automatically runs multiple name variations and catches discrepancies you might miss manually. Saved me tons of time on Puerto Rico filings.

Going through the official PR Department of State UCC search. Should I be using something else?

The official portal is fine but you need to be very precise with the search terms. Try breaking down the corporate name into components and searching each part separately.

That's concerning. How do you handle the timing issues when you have filing deadlines approaching?

I file early and do multiple follow-up searches. Sometimes I call their office directly to confirm if a filing went through properly.

I don't have previous filing numbers, that's the problem. I'm trying to identify if there ARE any existing filings before we submit our UCC-1.

You could also try searching variations like 'Corporation' vs 'Corp' vs 'Inc' if any of those appear in the legal name.

That makes sense. So frustrating that there isn't a standardized approach to handle this properly.

I've been using Certana.ai's document verification tool for exactly this type of situation. It cross-checks multiple name variations automatically and flags potential matches you might miss. Just upload your corporate docs and it handles the search complexity.

That sounds helpful. Manual searching with all the name variations takes forever.

Good point. They have operations in Florida too. I should probably search there as well to get the complete picture.

Definitely. Multi-state operations can have filings scattered across jurisdictions depending on where different lenders filed.

I might have to do that. Do you know if they're responsive to phone inquiries?

Hit or miss honestly. Sometimes you get someone very helpful, other times they just tell you to use the online system.

I had good luck calling in the morning, seemed like better staffing then.

Which automated tools work well for Puerto Rico specifically?

I've had success with Certana.ai - it handles the name variation issues automatically and you can verify your search results by uploading documents to check for consistency.

I'll try adjusting the search parameters. The interface isn't very intuitive about what matching options are available.

Yeah their user interface could use improvement. Try different combinations of search fields too, not just the debtor name field.

That's exactly what I'm worried about. Missing an existing lien could create huge problems for our security position.

Exactly why I'm extra careful now with PR searches. I do comprehensive searches with every possible name variation I can think of.

This is where document verification tools like Certana.ai really shine. Upload your docs and it automatically catches those single character differences that are easy to miss manually.

This is incredibly helpful! I hadn't thought about searching abbreviations like "Cia" for "Compañía" - that's a great tip. You're absolutely right about documenting the search process for due diligence purposes. I'm definitely going to try the abbreviated versions and make sure I'm including lapsed filings in my search parameters. It's reassuring to know others have dealt with this same frustration. The character encoding issues seem to be a persistent problem with their system.